A jargon-free journey through the world of social media.

Retail

January 04, 2012

Without a doubt, 2011 was defined by the ever-evolving digital landscape. With all the advances we saw last year, what's in store for 2012?

My colleague Chris Zobel, Luckie & Company's Director of Digital Strategy, runs down the top trends of 2012, all of which revolve around data and content. This year, tailoring content to consumers will be key, and savvy marketers are already heading in that direction.

August 17, 2010

Here at Luckie, we recently invited mobile analyst Joy Liuzzo from Insight Express to come share her thoughts on trends and technology. While she had a lot of fascinating insight to share, here's a slide that really blew me away:

Essentially, this chart shows that — based on three years' worth of research data — mobile advertising is twice as effective as online advertising when it comes to ad awareness, and a whopping six times more effective in the "holy grail" category of purchase intent.

Later in the presentation, she sliced it even thinner, showing that for the retail sector specifically, mobile ads were 14 times more powerful than online in the area of aided awareness and 8 times more effective in purchase intent.

I was simply flabbergasted by these numbers, so I followed up with a brief Q&A asking Joy to help put these findings into context. Check out her responses after the jump:

June 24, 2010

A few weeks back, I was honored to share the stage with my friend Dan Shust in front of about 4,000 people at the Internet Retailer Conference and Expo. Our topic was "Two Thumbs Up — Or Down — On Social Media Efforts."

Essentially, we walked through several case studies of how retailers are leveraging social media, then gave our take on whether we liked it or not. (See below for some coverage of our talk.)

The presentation seemed to spark a lot of discussion, and as you'll see in the slideshow below, we got the audience in on the action by having them text their own "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" in real time.

Here's the presentation, with embedded links to some of the related content:

June 04, 2010

One of the most exciting fields in digital marketing right now is retail, which is why I'm really looking forward to speaking to 4,000 or so attendees at the Internet Retailer Conference and Expo in Chicago next Wednesday.

I'll be discussing recent case studies in how retailers — online and brick-and-mortar — are using social media to increase their reach and customer loyalty.

The format of this presentation will be pretty fun, because I'll be on stage with one of my favorite digital luminaries, Dan Shust from Resource Interactive in Columbus, Ohio. Our discussion is called "Two Thumbs Up (or Down) On Social Media Efforts."

I don't want to spoil any surprises by talking about the case studies here, so I figured I'd share a few that we actually ended up cutting from the presentation due to time constraints.

Specifically, the following three tidbits are examples of insanely innovative ideas on how the in-person shopping experience is evolving almost to science-fiction levels. Check it out:

The Diesel Cam

While it might sound a bit pervy at first to imagine a Web cam in your fitting room, the Diesel Cam is actually a really fun idea floated by an agency in Spain for the Diesel fashion line. After trying on an outfit, you can have your picture taken and uploaded to your Facebook page, where friends can help you judge the look.

Here's a video demonstration:

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Intel's Holographic Window Display

Intel admits this is "three to five years out from what we'll see in the retail space," but it's still a compelling example of how new technology is changing the nature of shopping, even in-store.

Check out the video (after a brief pre-roll ad):

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N Building: The first QR Code facade

Most examples of QR Codes — those square bar codes that you've probably noticed popping up in magazine ads — simply direct your mobile device to a promotional Web site. That's fine, but it doesn't get at the tremendous social media potential housed in those black-and-white icons.

So I was excited to see the N Building, a Japanese project that covered an entire low-rise facade with QR Codes that share information about the businesses inside — and even Twitter posts by the people inside. A little creepy, a little trippy, but undeniably interesting.

How it works:

If you're going to be at the Internet Retailer Conference, I hope we get a chance to connect. If you can't make it, Dan and I plan to post our presentation as soon as we can after the event.

Throughout January, The Social Path is running daily tips on how to improve your social life — online, at least. Click here to learn more.

How many product reviews did you read when you were making your holiday purchases last year? Dozens? Hundreds even?

Now riddle me this: How many product reviews did you write in all of 2009?

Unless you're one of the very few, very prolific reviewers on the Web, chances are that you don't contribute much to sites like Amazon, Overstock.com, CNET, etc. When we do write reviews, most of us are making snap judgments — often negative — based on our first experiences with a product. ("I found the box overly difficult to open! Thumbs down!")

But what about the trusty products that stick with us for months or even years at a time? We rarely re-visit the sites where we bought them and share our opinions.

So today, we're going to try something easy and fun to get you in the habit of reviewing things you've put to the test.

First, just pick three items that you've had for three months or more. Not a Christmas gift or impulse buy from last week. Go for things that you've started to take for granted because they've been consistently useful, even if they're not that sexy.

Admittedly, I gave each one a five-star review on Amazon, mostly because I think they're each great at what they do, even if what they do isn't all that exciting. But more important than the star rating is the actual feedback you write into the review. Be honest about how the product has met your expectations and about any shortcomings you've experienced.

Chances are, you'll also learn a few things about the item you're reviewing when you browse through other people's opinions. I've found some pretty cool new ways to use old gadgets just by reading reviews.

That's it for today! Three reviews. I'm sure you can swing that, even on a busy Monday. We'd love it if you shared the items you reviewed in the comments section.

Estimated time needed: 30-60 minutes.

Benefits: Contributing to the global well of information that you drink from every day.

Coming tomorrow: One simple Twitter Lists tip that will make you say, "How did I not know about that?"

November 02, 2009

Remember a few years back, when online shopping reached a tipping point and simply became a standard part of the American holiday experience? Well this year, there are even more digitally driven shifts in the works, and you can bet that shoppers and sellers alike are going to notice.

Here are four to watch:

1. Smart phones as the ultimate shopping tool

If you own a pickup truck, everyone wants you to help them
move. If you own an iPhone, get ready to feel a similar dependence, because everyone will want you
to help them shop.

This time around, the iPhone is a veritable treasure trove
of easy-to-navigate review hubs and apps like RedLaser, a $1.99 download that
lets you scan product barcodes in stores to see whether you could find a better
price elsewhere.

Another easy trick is to use Google’s mobile app to search
for a specific product, then click “Shopping results for…” in your search
results. You’ll get a simple, scrolling list of online prices. Similarly,
Amazon’s app can help you see what you’d pay on their site for an in-store
item.

The downside of all these great tools? Only 17% or so of
Americans are on smartphones, so if you’ve got one, get ready to be dragged on
just about every shopping excursion this year.

2. Shopping directly from Facebook

Social networks, especially Facebook, have been huge assets
for popular retailers. But they pose one major problem: Selling something to
your fans almost always requires sending them away from Facebook, something users rarely want to do.

To overcome this hurdle, companies need a reliable and
secure way to sell products directly through Facebook.